Lubricating mechanism



'July 19, 1932- c. c. HowENsTlNE 1,868,167

LUBRICATING MECHANI SM Filed May 25, 1929 INVENTOR 6%748265 Eau/57253272@ /MYMW ATTO EYS.

* Aunirsi)*,s'iariss PATENT44 oei-"ica Patented July 19, 1932 CHARLES o. HoWENsTINE, vor nn'rRoiT, iviIciiIGiiN LUBRICATING- LIECHANISM Application filed May 25, 1929. Serial No. l365,805.V

rlhis invention relates to lubricating mechanism and particularly to such mechanism as is adapted to intermittently lubricate bearing surfaces, the principal object being the proternal combustion engine of a motor vehicle whereby the pressure side of the engine lubricating system may be intermittently and automatically connected with certain chassis bearings.

Another object is to provide a devicefor automatically connecting a bearing to a source of lubricant under `pressure Vaty relatively infrequent intervals of time, including a plurality of superposed disc-like members each having gear teeth formedthereon and each driven from a common member,thenumber of teeth on each of the disc-like members varying from the number of teeth on the rest of the disc-like members, and each of the disc-like members being provided with an opening ing to be lubricated, and said passageway being opened when the openings in all of the disc-like members become simultaneously aligned.

\ A further object is to provide an oil pump with a casing secured thereto, a pinion being.

provided in thecasing in driving relationship with respect to the oil pump, a. plurality of superposed disc-like gears being provided within the casing in meshing relationship with the pinion and each disc-like gears having a different number of teeth than the remainder of the same, whereby the angular velocity `of` each during rotation will beslightly different from the remainder one of the disc-like gears cooperating with a track formed in the casing and all of the gears being maintained in contacting relationship, the tracl; being provided with an opening therein leading to a bearingl surface to be lubricated and the interior of the casing being connected with'the discharge side of the pump, e'ach'of thegears being provided with an opening wherebyv when all of said openings are in alignment and in align-` nient with the opening in theV track, oil from the pump will be led tof thebearing to be lubricated. A

The above being among the-objects of thev present invention7 the same consists in certain novel features of construction and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described withv reference to the accompanying drawinggandv then claimed, having the above and other objects in view. y i i In the accompanying drawing which shows` a suitable embodiment of the present invention, and in which like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several different views Fig. 1 is a more or less diagrammatic side" elevation of a motor vehicle chassis.

Fig. 2jis asectional view taken through the center of the oil pump shown mounted on the motor in Fig. 1. u f

Fig. 3- is a view taken on'the line 3-3 of Fig. 2. Y l

Fig. 4 is a plan view of one of the discjlIike gears shown in section in thepumpV inl iig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional .view taken on the line 5 5 ofFig. 3.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary viewl ofthe under face of the cover shown inl Fig; showing the manner of forming the track` thereon when a single oil lead is employedto the chassis bearings. 1

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary View taken as. on the line 7-7 of Fig-f6, and showing the` fragment of one of the gear members cooperating therewith.

Considerable attention has been directed in the last few years to improving methods in the lubricating of the chassisbearings of motor vehicles. Most of these attempts have.. taken the form of providing-a singlemeans4 for simultaneously distributing a supplyv of lubricant to substantially all of the chassis bearings, and most of these in turn, have been of the type in which an independent oil supply has been provided for the chassis lubricating system. This, of course, necessitates maintaining two independent lubricant reservoirs. Incidentally, this last class of device has also been limited to manually or foot operated devices. I am also aware that attempts have .been made to connect the eninvolved a train of gears of such sizeV and construction as to prohibit its usecommercially because of excessive cost, and furthermore involved so many wearing surfaces as to make it impractical for this reason, if no other. Furthermore, the construction was such that unless the gear train was carried out to an extent totally out'of proportion to the benefits derived, the engine lubricating system and the chassis lubricating system would ybe connected at so frequent intervals as to cause an over-lubrication of the chassis bearings and a waste of the engine lubricat- V ing oil.

may be varied Within relatively wide limits at ver)7 little cost. Furthermore, by my construction, a device is provided inl which veryy little wear is liable to occur, and in which the device may be assured a length of life, without servicing, equal to that of the motor vehicle engine itself.

Referring to the drawing, and particularly to Fig. 1, I show,'in order to illustrate one application of the present invention, a motor vehicle chassis comprising a frame 10 having.v wheels. 11 connected thereto through the usual springs 12 which are connected at their front. endV to the frame through the usual Spring bolt 13, and at their rear ends through the, usual shackles 14 and bolts 15. The chassis is provided with an internal combustion engine 16 upon which in turn is mounted a suitable embodiment of the present invention, indicated generally in Fig. 1 as 17, andY surfaces thereof. The device indicated generally as 17 is preferably constructed as a unitary part of the oil' pump conventionally employed for supplying oil tothe various wearing surfaces of the engine, and may take the form illustrated in the remaining figures.

Referring particularly to Fig. 2, a conventional type of loil pump is1 shown. which comprises a housing 2O in which are provided two inter-meshing gears 21 and 22 respectively, co-acting to form the conventional type of gearpump. -The casing 20 is shown as being secured to theside of the crank case 23 of the engine 16 by bolts such as 24. Nonrotatably secured to the gear 21 is the drivev l shaft 25 Vwhich may'proj ect inwardly into the crank case 23 'and' at its inner end carry a gear 26 meshing with a gear 27 secured to the cam shaft 28 of the engine, so as .to receive. drivingmovement therefrom. The casing 2,0 is, of course, provided with a suitableinlet and outlet (not shown), as in conventional constructions. Instead of the usuall cap for the casing 20, the open side thereof is closed by a second casing 29 secured thereto by vbolts such as 30,V or other suitable means. Projecting up into the interior of the casing 29 and'preferably formed either as an integral part of the gear 21 or of the shaft 25, is a pinion 30. The shaft` 31 for the gear 22 has bearing in the lower wall of the vcasing 29 and also projects up into lthe interiorof the casing 29,*the bottomwall of the casi-ng. beingbossed therearound as at 32, and the bere of the boss beingenlarged as at 33. Rotatably received on the shaft 31is a plurality of superposed contacting disc-like gear membersA 34, 35, 36 and 37 which lie in meshing relationship with theV pinion 30. The casing 29 is provided with a cover 38 secured thereto by means of bolts suchfas 39, 0r other suitable means. Formed on the under face ofthe cover 38 is an annular track 40 concentricwith the shaft 31, and against which the upper disc 37 is constantly urged by means-of acoil spring 41 held under compression inthe enlarged portion 33 of the boss 32, andk theV washer 42 bearing against the lower face of the lower gear member 34. An opening 44 is provided in the lower wall of the casing 29 and connects the interior of the casing 29 with the discharge or pressure side of the oil pump so that the interior of the casing 29 is maintained under the same pressure as the discharge pressure ofthe oil pump. Each of the gear members 34, 35, 36 and 37 is pro'- vided with an opening 45 therein, the open ings 45 all'being an equal distance from the axis of rotation of the gear members 34 to 37 inclusive so that when all of them. are brought into alignment they form a continuous passage through thev gear members '34 to 37 inclusive axially of the same. The openings 4-5- are furthermore at Vsuch a distance from the axis of rotation of the gear members that they are invertical alignment Vata-ll relatively infrequent time intervals.

i ceptable for ordinary use.

times with the lower surface of the track on the cover 38. The cover 38 is provided therein 'with one or more openings 48 extending through the same in alignment with the track 40and at the same distance from the axis of the track 40 as the openings 45 from the axis of the gears 34 to 37 inclusive. It will be apparent that when the openings are in alignment with each other and with one of the openings 48, the pressure of the oil in the casing 29 Will be transmitted to such opening 48. These openings 48 are connected through connections such as 49 to the various tubes 18 which extend to the bearing surfaces previously described in connection with the bolts 13 and 15, so that upon the understood that these gears may have a simi' lar but each a slightly different number of "i teeth, and still all properly mesh with the pinion such as 30 having a constant number of teeth. The result of this construction is that each one of the gears 34, 35, 36 and 37 lis driven at a slightly different speed, with the result that the openings 45 will be aligned or at least will overlap each other only at As .a way Vof illustration, let it be considered that the gear 34 has forty-nine teeth, the gear 35 has fifty teeth, the gear 36 has fifty-one teeth,

and the gear 37 has fifty-two teeth. It may also be considered that the pinion 30 has twelve teeth. Recognizing that when the openings 45 are once in alignment, to bring them again into alignment by constantly turning the pinion 30 in one direction, the lpinion 30 must turnanumber ofrevolutions equal to the product of the number of teeth on the gears 34, 35, 36 and 37 divided by the number of teeth in the pinion 30, we find that the pinion 30, under the assumption made, must` turn 541,450 revolutions. Assuming the cam shaft 28 as running half-engine speed, and assuming that the engine is turning 1000 'l r. p. ms. at a vehicle speed of thirty miles an hour, we find that the time between full alignment of the openings 45 would be 1080 ininutes, in which time the vehicle would` have travelled approximately 540 miles. VRegardless of the speed of the vehicle, it will be apparent that an automatic lubrication of the chassis bearings fed by the tubes 18 will occur every 540 miles. This interval of travel between periods of lubrication may obviously be varied by varying the number of disc-like gears, the number of teeth which each is provided with, or the relative diameter and number of teeth on the pinion 30. The proportions assumed above are considered to be ac `The length-fof time which the lubricating oil is being supplied under pressure'to the` various chassis bearings may be controlled byV varying the size of the openings 45. It may'Y also be controlled by varyingthe size of the openings 48 on the face ofthe track 40. I prefer to elongate the lower ends of the openings 48 in the direction ofthe track 40, as in-f dicated at in Fig. 3, Where more than one opening 48 is employed; It is preferable, in some cases, to provideV one opening 48ifor each tube 18, as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, but in some cases it may be preferred to employ but a single supply line, such as a single tube 18 as illustrated in Fig.7,andWhichconnects with oneor more headers -56 from which individual tubes such as 57may extend to the various bearings. lVhere a single opening48` is "employed, as inFig. 7, I prefer to form a continuous groove such as 58m thelowerface of the track 40, as yillust-rated in Fig. 6, there-l.

by providing a longer period of time for the flow of oil into the tube 18 than would. otherwise be possible, this being desirable inf-viewof the fact that a greater iioW of oilwill` be necessary through the single opening48'iny thiscase, to take care of `all ofthe bearings.

If the openings 45 are of the same diameter and eachdiameter approximately equal. to

the circular pitchof the gears, and each ,geary varies from its adjacent gear as to the total number lof teethby one, it Will be apparent` that from the moment two of the openings 45 begin to overlap it will `require approximate- Y ly one complete revolution of `the gears'to bring their openings 45 into complete alignment,-v andwill require approximately one.

complete revolutionto again move themjout of complete alignment.vv VvIn such case,it will be apparent that the openings 45 when'fthey are once sufficiently alignedtopermittheflow of oil through them to thel openings 48,-. will deliver oil to the openings 48 during two complete revolutions of the gears, assuming the ,openings 45 are approximately equal to the circular pitch of the gears. From this it Will -be apparent that by changing the size of theopenings45, a'greater or lesser amount of: oil may be transmitted tothe openings 48 `during the infrequent time intervals thatall of theh openings 45 are in partial or full alignment.y

With the construction thus far described, it will be apparent that thepressure of the oil' Within the housing 29 acts over approximately the full area of the lower gear 34 to"maiii tain it against the lower face of the track40f and prevent possible leakage of oil into .the

openings V48. Consequently, the` spring '.41 need only be of suiiicient strength to hold the upper disc 37 in contact'with the track 40. I

find that this amount of -pressure is not neci-` essary for the suitable operation-of the de#I vice, and may foster greater wear than i'sdesirable. Consequently, I provide `means for permitting the oil under pressure Within the Y f Although I have shown ingto force the disc lagainstthe track This means may take the form of fa groove;

such as in the shaft 3l, or may be provided as indicated in Fig. 3, by drilling an opening 61 laterally through the track 40. In some cases it may be desirable to relieve the adjacent faces of the gears 34 to 37 adjacent their centers, as indicated in the gears 34 and 35 at 62, in Fig. 2, to effect a more perfect sealing contact between them.

, -From the above it Will be apparent that the construction herein provided offers an eX- tremely simple and economical.construction whereby4 oil under pressure maybe fed to bearings at relatively infrequenty intervals, and that the time interval between the application of oil to the bearings may be easily. simply and economically varied to meet any conditions. It Will also be apparentthaty by this construction the relative amount of oil Which may be fed to the bearings at infrequent intervalsmay be easily and simply controlled.

' It Will also be apparent that the construction l'herein provided Will have va relatively vsmall amount of Wear as all of ytheparts. are

constantly immersed in oil under pressure. Furthermore, the relative rates of rotation between Athergears 234-37 Which Abear against each other are so close to each other that the Wear between these gears will .be substantially negligible. Y i the present invention as incorporated asa unitary part of the usual lubricatingl pump provided in connect-ion With internal'combustion engines, itis obvious4 that it may be made and driven separately from'the pump and simply connectedv by a tube or .other oil lead to the pump,-so as to effect the same result as herein described.

It Will also be apparent that although I have described the present invention yinconnection withk a motor vehicle for the purpose ofvv lubricating the chassis bearings, and as connected With the constantly operating lubricating system of the vehicle, the device may equally Well be applied to industrial machinery for lubricating the bearing surfaces thereof,in Which case the pump itself may be constantly operated, but, will be effective for lubrication only whenV the openings in the disc-like gears are in full or-partialalign-'i let and anY outlet, a plurality of superposed" cooperating rotatableY discs 4'in said casing one of Which overlies said outlet, each of said discs having an opening therein, the path of travel of said openings intersectingy the axial line of said outlet, and a common means .directly engaging at least tWo ofsaid discs for driving them at unequal rates ofrotation;

2. In combination, a casing having an inlet and an outlet, a plurality of contacting overlapping rotatable discs in said casing, each of saiddiscs having an `opening therein, the path of travel of said openings inrelation with respect to rsaid outlet, each of said discs being provided With an opening therethrough eccentric to its axis of rotation and'having a path of travel intersecting the axis ofV said outlet, and a single means for rotating said discs each at a different rate of rotation.

4l. In combination, a casing having an inlet andan outlet, a rotatable disc overlying 1 tersecting the axial line of said outlet, one

said outletv and normally sealing the same,

said disc having an opening therein adapted to be brought into alignment With said outlet'once during each revolution of said disc, a second rotatable disc normally sealing the opening in the first mentioned disc, said second disc having an opening therein'alignable With the opening in the first mentioned disc and means mounted on a single shaft directly engaging said discs for driving said discs each at a different rate of rotation. v

5. In combination, a casing having an inlet andv an outlet, a rotatable ydisc overlying 4said outlet and normally sealing the same,

said dischaving an'opening therein adaptled to be brought into alignment With said outlet once during each revolution of said disc, a second rotatable disc concentric With the first mentioned disc and contacting thereagainst, said second `discy normally s-ealinOP the opening in the first mentioned disc and itself being provided with an opening therethrough alignable with the opening in the lirst mentioned disc, and a. single gear means for driving said discs each at a different rate of rotation.

6. In combination, a casing having an inletv and an-outlet, a rotatable disc overlying said outlet and normally sealing the same, said disc having an opening therein.

adapted tok be brought into alignment with said outlet vonce during each revolution of said disc, a second rotatable disc concentric With the rst mentioned disc and contacting thereagainst, said second disc normally sealing the opening in the first mentioned disc and itself being provided with an opening therethrough alignable with the opening in the iirst mentioned dise, means for driving said dises each at a diiierent rate of rotation, and means` constantly urging said discs together and the first mentioned disc into sealing relation with respect to said outlet.

T. In combination, a casing having an inlet and an outlet, a pa-ir of overlapping disclilre gear members in said casing one of which lies in sealing relation with respect to said outlet and is provided with an opening therethrough alignable with said outlet, the other of said Vgears normally sealing the opening in the lirst mentioned gear lwhen said opening is in alignment with said outlet, said other of said gears having an opening therethrough alignable with the opening in said iirst mentioned gear, and a pinion engaging said gears and driving said gears each ata different rate ot rotation.

8. In combination, a casing having an inlet passage and an outlet passage, a plurality of superposed contacting concentric rotatable discs disposed between said inlet and said outlet and normally sealing them Yfrom each other, each of said discs being provided with an opening therethrough and all ot said openings being of equal distance from the center of rotation of said discs and alignable with one of said passages, and means common to all of said discs for simultaneously rotating said discs each at a diiierent rate of rotation.

9. In combination, a casing having an inlet passage and an outlet passage, a plurality of superposed contacting concentric rotatable discs disposed between said inlet and said outlet and normally sealing them 'from each other, each of said discs being provided with an opening therethrough and allV et said openings being of equal distance trom the center of rotation of said discs and alignable with one ot said passages, each oi said discs having a different number of gear teeth formed on its periphery, and apinion having a uniform number of teeth engageable with said discs for driving them.

10. In combination, a casing having an-inlet and an outlet, a track formed on the interior of said casing and upon which said outlet opens, a rotatable disc resting against said track and being provided with an opening alignable with said outlet, means for normally sealing said opening when in alignment with said outlet comprising a plurality of contacting like rotatable disc members one of which bears against the first mentioned disc, each of the last mentioned disc members having an opening therein alignable with each other and with said outlet, a shaft extending into said casing in axially parallel relation with respect to said discs and means on said shaft for driving said discs eachata diiierent rate of rotation.

l1. In combination, a pump including a casingand a rotatable pump element therein, a second casing secured lto said pump casing and interiorly connected to the discharge side thereof, an outlet for said secondcasing, a plurality of co-operating rotatable' means within said second casing normally sealing said outlet and adapted to intermittently uncover it, and a single driving connection between said pump and said rotatable means adapted to drive at least two of said means at rates ot speed different from each other. 12. In combination, an oil pump including a casing and a rotatable pump element therein, a second casing secured to said pump cas-` ing and being interiorlyconnected with the discharge side of said pump, an outlet for said second casing, a plurality olf gear members in saidsecondcasing normally sealing said outlet and adapted to intermittentlyuncover it, and a pinion having direct driving connection with said rotatable pump element in mesh with said gear'members for driving them at rates of speed different vfrom each other. I .l .A

13. In combination, an oilpumpcomprising a casing and a pairof gears, a second casing secured to said casingand being-interiorly connected with the rdis'charge side of said pump, an outlet'for said second casing, a plurality of cooperating gear members normally sealing said outlet, and apinion in said second casing concentric with and rotatable in direct accordance with oneof saidffgears and engaging all of said gearmembers, said gear members each having an opening therein adapted to be intermittently -aligned with each other and with said outlet.

14. In combination, an oil pump comprising a easing and a pair of gears,a second casing secured to said casing and beingv in communication with the discharge side/ of` said-pump, an outlet for-said second casing, a pinionconcentric with oneof said gears and rotating in direct accordance therewith extending int-o said second casing, a shaftfor the other of said gears projecting into said casing, a .pluralty of gear members rotatably mounted on said shaft within said second casing and each lying in meshing relationship with respect to said pinion, one of said gear members normally sealing said outlet and being provided with an opening therethrough alignable with said outlet, and the remainder of said gear members normally sealing the opening of the irst mentioned gear member and each provided with an opening alignable with said opening in the first mentioned gear member.

15. In combination with a lubrication pump adapted for continuous circulation of a bearing system and having an inlet and an outlet for said system, a casing, a shaft drivlas Yingly connected With said pump extending into said casing, an outlet in said casing,va plurality of overlapping rotatable discs in said casingsV normally closing said easing .f outlet, said discs each having an o ening therein alignable with said casing out et and with each other, means drivingly connecting `said shaft and said discs for unequal rotan tional speeds of said discs, vvherebyto inter- '.10 mittently uncover said casing outlet and means acting independently of said continuous circulation system connecting the discharge side of said pump with said casing.

16. In combination, a casing having an in- 1y5 let and an outlet, a plurality of superposed (zo-operating rotatable discs in said casing, one of Which overlies said outlet, each of said `discs having an opening therein, the path of travel of said openings intersecting the axial 'zofline of said outlet, means for driving said discs at unequal rates of rotation, and resilient-means constantly urging said discs into contact with each other.

17.y In combination, a casing having an inlet and anoutlet, a plurality of superposed co-operating rotatable discs in said casing one of which overlies said outlet,each of said discs having an opening therein, the path oi' travel of said openings intersecting the axial linevof said outlet, and means for driving 'said discs at lunequal ratesof rotation, said outlet being elongated in the direction of the f path of travel of the opening in that one of Y said discs next adjacent thereto.

18. In combination, a casing element having an outlet opening in va planular face thereof, a rotatable disc element overlapping said face Vand VVhaving an opening therein Whose path'of travel intersects said outlet 40 opening, one of said openings communicating with an annular groove located in the corresponding of said elements and approximately coinciding with said path of travel, another rotatable disc overlappingthe first mentioned disc and having an opening therein Whose path intersects the axial line of saidl outlet i zopen'ing, and means for driving said discs at different rates of rotation.

CHARLES C. HOWENSTINE-- 

